


Truth or Dare

by RakishAngle (afterdinnerminx)



Series: Truth or Dare [1]
Category: Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Smut, Truth or Dare
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-28
Packaged: 2018-04-16 18:04:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4635000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afterdinnerminx/pseuds/RakishAngle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phryne ups the ante on her evening entertainment with Jack.  This is a series of shorts (one-shots?  maybe?) that results from their new game.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Good Cup of Tea

Miss Fisher was getting antsy. She enjoyed her evenings with Detective Inspector Jack Robinson, to be sure. She found that she even enjoyed playing draughts with him. Whereas she usually found the game as stimulating as a game of cards or, perhaps embroidering a toilet seat cover.

Surely the fact that he was a handsome man helped to pass the evenings. The fact that he was a handsome man who, in fact, let her traipse all over his crime scenes helped all the more. She was conscious that in her mind, the word "let" might be open for interpretation.

No, what she really liked about playing draughts with the detective inspector is that when he played, he played seriously. He brought out her competitive streak. He was also very, very good at playing several steps in advance. He caught her out a few times when she made a winning move only to discover that she was being trounced within the next few moves.

Nonetheless, she felt the need to up the ante. Perhaps it was the heat. More likely, it had something to do with growing frustration proportional to the number of men she had been rejecting of late. 

Jack was thinking of his next move. Phryne truly enjoyed watching his eyes dart about the game board. She knew he saw the opportunity to be crowned and also saw that she'd take his king in the very next step. He probably also considered jumping his man once back, luring her in so that he could take another one of her players. She was getting better at anticipating his next move but more often than not, he surprised her.

He played the move that had him go back a square.

He glanced up at her.

She thought about moving her piece in. Allowing herself to be caught. But, what's the fun in that? Phryne chewed on her lower lip as Jack sat back and took a sip of whiskey.

"You're smirking"

"I'm not."

"You are. Nevermind, if you tell me what you are thinking, I'm highly likely to be embarrassed. Please keep it to yourself."

Now she was pouting. And he was smirking. So, she was caught after all.

"Jack, I was thinking..." She caught him rolling his eyes. "What?!?" Her eyes got rounder. 

"I don't want to know."

She glared at him. She sipped her whiskey and investigated the possible moves available to her.

"Spoilsport."

She moved a piece into position 28, effectively blocking his king from moving forward. Ha. How if he moved into position 24 to get her king, she'd jump him first. She liked the sound of that. Jumping him, that is.

He looked up at her again then down again at the board. He was doing that thing with his hands. That thing where he was lightly tapping his finger to his knee. He moved into position 24.

Yippee, she thought! I've got him now. She jumped and took his king. 

Jack appreciated her look of glee.

Then he jumped her 16 to 23. Again from 23 to 14. One last time from 14 to 7.

He grinned unapologetically. She tried glaring at him. She really did.

"Very good, Inspector. But the game isn't over yet."

She looked down at the board and up at him. She's going to chance it.

"I think we need to raise the stakes, Inspector."

"Gambling, Miss Fisher? I don't think so. That is quite illegal, as you know."

"Only if it is money at stake. No, no. I'm thinking of something else entirely."

He squinched his eyes. This is exactly what he was trying to avoid. Knowing her, she has concocted some sort rules around taking an item of clothing off for each crown that occurred. Or sharing secrets on a case that he definitely shouldn't be sharing.

He practically glared at her under hooded eyes. "Whatever you are going to ask. Is it legal?"

"Of course!"

"Can I beg out without consequence if it involves confidentiality associated with my job?"

She sniffed. "I suppose"...knowing full well that she had ways of getting around that.

"Can I keep my clothes on?"

"I assure you Jack, you are always welcome to take your clothes off with or without any games in place."

He looked nonplussed.

"Oh, alright. No one will force you to take off any clothes."

"What is this idea, then?"

"You have heard of the game Truth or Dare, haven't you?" 

Yes, he had. This is what he was afraid of.

"I'm simply proposing that the loser of each of our OTHER games - draughts...chess...investigations" (she raised her eyes coquettishly) choose between a truth or dare. The winner asks a question to be answered honestly or provides a suitable dare that the other must perform."

"And in the case of a forfeit?"

"The loser provides the next dinner"

"So, the loser can always choose truth?"

"Uh huh. Always"

"And a Truth cannot include information about my job that I am legally obligated to keep confidential?" 

"We are partners Jack. When do you ever have to keep confidential information from me? No, I think withholding that information warrants a forfeit."

He could live with that. Losing wasn't going to be the problem...winning was. Phryne would never choose a "truth." The issue for him would be in coming up with a dare that was satisfactorily adventurous for her but not mortifying for him. He was less worried about the latter. The worst possible scenario is that he would win. She'd ask for a dare. He'd come up with something either childish or inconsequential. What if he couldn't come up with anything she considered ... daring?

If he accepted, this dilemma would begin very soon, indeed. He was only 2 moves from winning this round. 

He looked at her again. She knew he'd say yes. He could tell by the way her eyes were twinkling at him. Oh what the hell. It isn't like he's going to be giving into any "gaudy nights". Ultimately, the control was his. He was reasonably sure he could be inventive. He was a grown man, after all.

"I don't think you know what you are getting into, Phryne. You might be getting in over your head."

He lowered his eyes and pretended to see that she wasn't grinning at him like a cat who already had her mouse.

"I think I can handle myself with you, Jack."

He looked up at her and tilted his head. "You know how competitive I can get. You also know that I am not inclined to suffer fools gladly. Are you sure you are up for this?"

"Quite." She raised her eyelashes, recklessly.

"Very well, then" He nodded. "I accept."

"Oh, its *my* turn." Jack can tell she sees the opportunity to jump one of 4 men remaining on the board. She takes it. Of course.

He moves his king into position.

She can only move into a single spot. So, she does.

He sweeps the board of her remaining pieces. "I won."

She looked surprised. He tried to hide that this was, in fact, very charming.

Jack raised his chin and met her eyes. "So, what will it be?" He said stoically. "Truth or dare?"

She glanced at him sideways, her lips in a sly smile. "Dare"

"What a surprise." He got up and asked if he could look in the kitchen.

She knitted her eyebrows together and followed him. "What are you looking for, Jack?" 

"I'm just wondering if your kitchen has an apron"

"Well, here is Mr. Butler's" 

Jack looked at the man's apron, which would fasten to the upper section of a coat or a waistcoat with a button. No. This would not do. He pursed his lips. "I'm looking for a women's apron. Perhaps a pinafore?"

Odd request, thinks Phryne. She searches around and finds a thin, white cotton pinafore with lace and ruffles up to the neck, a fitted waist and a skirt that would go down past a woman's knees and about three quarters around her hips. She is wearing a confused frown and holds it up to Jack for his inspection.

"Is this what you are looking for, Jack?"

"Yes, that will do." He licked his lips and prepared to issue first dare. 

"Miss Fisher, I dare you to make me a cup of tea wearing that pinafore."

She laughed and started slipping over her head.

"No, Phryne" Jack shook his head with the kind of frown that showed he was actually very amused. "Just the pinafore."

He waited for the other shoe to drop. Phryne Fisher blushed prettily. That alone was rewarding.

He looked at her innocently. "You have a dressing area down the hall. Do you not?"

He sat down at the kitchen table, crossed his legs and leaned one arm over the back of the chair.

"Close your mouth, Miss Fisher. You have a dare to perform." Her jaw snapped shut. "Unless....you'd like to forfeit?"

She raised her chin and pursed her lips. She considered the situation and took herself - and the pinafore - down the hallway. In her absence, he contemplated the balance to strike between finding suitable dares and embarrassing himself. He forced himself to make an early peace with defining a set of experiments that would undoubtably land him in situations well worth even large doses of mortification.

In the meantime, Phryne was trying on her new outfit. Usually, she'd be quite up for something like this. In this case, there were 2 things weighing heavily on her mind. The first is that Jack had made quite an issue of protecting his own propriety only to raise the stakes so quickly. That was something she did not see coming and she didn't know how to respond to it. 

The second thing is that she really didn't know how to make tea.

Part of her thought, "well, how hard could it be?" Put in leaves. Add water. Steep - which, is really just a special term for "wait" (not that she ever did that well). Pour into a cup. Add milk and, possibly, sugar. Cup on saucer and serve.

But she didn't do it particularly well. Not like Dot.

She examined herself in the mirror. He said "only" the pinafore. She decided to remove her earrings, necklace and shoes. If she was doing this, she was not going to get corrected in her interpretation of things.

She took a deep breath and ignored the fluttering she felt in her chest. She's Phryne Fisher. She can do anything...and, in most cases, do it without smearing her lipstick. She decided to repeat this to herself as a mantra.

Imphrynefisherimphrynefisherimphrynefisher.

She walked into the kitchen, chin high and went to fill the kettle.

..fisherimphrynefisherimphrynefisher.

Her eyes went wide. 

He's reading the newspaper. She is in here, practically naked as the day she was born, and he's reading the newspaper??? 

She snorted imphrynefisherimphrynefisherimphrynefisher...

Jack cleared his throat and turned the page. "Do you actually know where the teapot is kept, Miss Fisher?"

He knows that she thrives on the response men give to her. He wasn't about to give away how alluring he thinks she is. He isn't going to share how his mouth watered on seeing her pert, dusky nipples peeking out behind the white lace. How he wanted to touch the tie at her waist. How his eyes caressed the curve of her hips. The white fabric barely shaded the black triangle covering the most intimate part of her. 

He could practically see her mind working. The teapot. The teapot. Her eyes glanced around the room. She looked back at Jack, who (nose in newspaper) was pointing his finger at the closed cabinet across from him.

"Of course, I know where my own teapot is" she stated, sounding particularly flustered.

She managed to find the tea, the sugar, the tea cups and some milk. ...imphrynefisherimphrynefisherimprhynefisher...

Jack loved the smell of Phryne's french perfume. The smell brought on his much improved mood of late. When she walked by him now, however, he could smell something that was much more...secret. Her scent made him dizzy.

No, as much as he didn't want her to feel ignored, it was much more important that he was able to maintain some level of dignity throughout the evening and - more importantly - the next time he saw her.

She continued the artifice of making tea. 

She was about to pour some tea leaves into the pot when she remembered that Dot would pour some hot water in first. Yes, she could do that. Ooch - hot. She looked around for a towel so that she could lift the handle of the kettle.

imphrynefisherimphrynefisher...jackisreadingadamnnewspaper...imphrynefisherimphrynefisher.

She swirled the water round the pot and felt the outside get warmer. She dumped some tea in. She looked at it then she added some more. More is always better, she reminds herself. She is frowning inside the pot. 

She isn't sure if this is right. She adds hot water until the pot is half full. She covered the pot with the lid then draped the towel over it. Just like she had seen Dot do it.

She cleared her throat. "Will you be taking sugar in your tea, Jack?"

"No, not tonight. Thank you"

She leaned against the counter with her arms folded across her chest. She had no idea how long it was supposed to sit before serving it. Jack had yet to look over once.

She poured the tea into a teacup. Topped it with a bit of milk. Gave it a stir. Put the cup in a saucer and brought it over to him.

She stood right in front of him to hand him his tea. He looked up at her - cool as a cucumber. "Ah, thank you Miss Fisher. Would you sit it down right over there?" He indicated a spot on the table with his eyes.

Phryne was quickly becoming incensed, thankyouverymuch. 

She made a play at leaning across him, folding her body over his arms and across his newspaper. She put the cup down and looked back at him. 

"Here? Is this okay, Jack?"

He had to bite his lips to keep from laughing. He nodded quickly. "Yes. Thank you."

She stood up again and made a point of pulling out the chair beside him to sit down. She pulled the newspaper down toward her with her index finger and looked him straight in the eye. 

"Will you be *trying* this cup of tea then, Jack?". He thought that she was doing her best to put on a haughty air. 

He did note, however, that she did look a little upset. He looked at her sideways and smiled warmly.

He collected the tea and saucer in one hand and the handle of the cup in the other. It was steaming. Still quite warm, then. He looked into her eyes and then down into the cup of tea. He blew across the top of the liquid a few times.

He sipped at the cup, experimentally. He almost choked. The tea was so thick, a spoon might be able to stick straight out of it. He cleared his throat, nodded and said "this is almost as good as Constable Collins' tea, Miss Fisher."

She glared at him. 

He felt a devilish again. "Well, I hope you weren't expecting it to be as good as Dot's, were you? She is such a treasure...as you are wont to describe her yourself."

Her nostrils flared.

"So, you'll finish it, then?" Her voice sounded unnaturally high, even to her. She ignored the detective inspector's grimace.

"Yes, yes. Quite happy to." He slowly sipped on the tea, ignoring how the large amount of tannins were puckering the inside of his mouth. He tried not to think about how the caffeine would be turning his stomach in a manner of minutes.

He turned to look Miss Fisher in the eye again and smiled pleasantly (Keep looking at her eyes, man. Just her eyes). "Had I lost Miss Fisher, what would you have asked of me?"

She was looking at him dolefully. "That depends. Would you have asked for a truth or a dare?"

"I think we both know that I would have asked for a truth."

Her eyes softened. "Well, I can't tell you what that would have been then, can I? I may want to ask it the next time we see each other."

He sets down his empty tea cup and stands, taking special care to fold the newspaper in front of his trousers. He walked out to the hallway, quickly swapping the newspaper for his overcoat before she had followed him out.

He grabbed his hat and set it on his head. He looked forward as he made his way to the door. He did his very best to sound conversational. 

"Now that I think on it, that was the most satisfying cup of tea I have had in a very long while."

He tilted his head and smiled at her. He was already dreaming up the next set of dares to accompany his upcoming victories.

"Good night, Miss Fisher." Detective Inspector Jack Robinson walked out the door into the night.


	2. Like a Rose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phryne bravely takes on a second dare and Jack is faced with a truth.

Jack Robinson's eyes were watering so heavily that he could barely see the beautiful lady detective sitting in the chair across from his desk. She had just returned from successfully completing a second dare. His assessment - between blinks - was that she arrived looking triumphant but now looked more despondent.

It was a relevation to him that he open channel of communication from the Fisher residence through his constable via his sweetheart brought him so much valuable information. She hadn't told him but she did have evening plans with a certain wealthy and handsome gentleman not well liked by her companion. He suspected that her reasons for being upset might have something to do with having no idea of how to remove herself from the stench she is now carrying.

"Miss Fisher, you have my commendations for working with Constable Schooner on catching that escaped animal. The Melbourne Zoo is very appreciative and told me that they would like to extend complementary tickets to their gala later this year."

"That's very kind of them, Jack. It wasn't particularly difficult to capture it, you know. It just...well, you can imagine that I never need to see another skunk again for as long as I live. Did they happen to share any particular potions for removing musk?"

"Yes, they happened to mention that bathing in vinegar or perhaps tomato juice would be helpful." He also did some research to find out that a paste made with sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and whiskey was likely to be more effective...and more pleasing when combined with any lingering odor. He'd make sure to telephone Mr. Butler with instructions.

"Did you have a few moments to review the closing details of the other case, Miss Fisher?"

"Jack, would you mind terribly if I went home now? Perhaps you could stop by after work for a quick drink so that we could wrap up some of those details. It was really clever of you to figure out that the husband's missing bank account was under the name of his daughter."

Jack stood and walked Phryne to his office door. "Not at all, Miss Fisher. Putting it in his mistress' name would have been a very good idea as well. I just happened to be lucky this time."

He wished her a very good day, closed his door and walked over to open his window. He was also very lucky that Constable Schooner personally made an appearance to ask for help in retrieving said animal moments after Phryne announced her choice...another dare.

He phoned the Fisher residence and gave detailed instructions for making the paste concoction. He also shared information about the tomato juice and vinegar, as perhaps a less successful measure.

Several hours later, Jack was in the parlor at Wardlow. He was sitting on the couch waiting for Phryne to make an appearance when Mr. Butler came in with tea and refreshments. "Please help yourselves to some biscuits, Inspector. They have just come out of the oven." Jack inhaled a melody of sugar, vanilla and...was that cinnamon?. "I was going to make up the paste you recommended but discovered that we didn't have all of the ingredients. I will make sure to refresh our staples tomorrow." Jack looked over at Phryne's decanter of very good whiskey and then back to the tray.

Jack was really quite fond of Mr. Butler.

In the hallway, Phryne was making a phone call. "So terribly sorry Geoffrey but I will have to cancel this evening. I am afraid that there has been a small mishap. No, no...I am quite alright. However, I am not very presentable for an evening out on the town. ... That is very kind of you, Geoffrey but I will just take a light dinner on my own and make an early evening of it. It has been a long day....Yes, of course. Another time then." The phone receiver was returned to its original position.

Moments later, Phryne entered the parlor looking very...pink. Jack gritted his teeth in thinking about how hard she must have scrubbed her skin over the course of the afternoon. 

He put a straight face on to greet her. "Hello Miss Fisher."

"Jack" she nodded.

Still pungent, he noted.

"I'm sorry to hear that you may have had to cancel your plans this evening." 

She gave him a brief sideways glance as if she wasn't completely convinced by his sincerity. Perhaps he shouldn't push it.

"I suppose you heard my phone call." With of a flick of her wrist she dismissed the plans that might have been. "Care to stay for a light supper, Inspector?"

He did.

They spoke more about the case and of his new research into financial investigation techniques. 

Phryne thought about the misnomer that she had heard to describe Jack. Plodding implies a lack of ingenuity. He was always learning new ways to improve his craft and quick to put new concepts to use. Whereas she brings some fresh thinking and ingenuity to their partnership, his skills are honed. She has neither the discipline or patience for such things but can appreciate them.

The returned to the parlor for some conversation and whiskey.

"Another game of draughts, Jack?"

He considered this. "You have had a pretty tough day, Miss Fisher. Are you certain?"

She was already pulling out the board to set it up.

The two of them played on. Jack noticed that she was on her game tonight. She had blocked several of his signature moves and even surprised him once or twice.

They continued speaking of the case from earlier that day. They spoke briefly about their mutual happiness for Hugh and Dot. She shared a new book by an american author: Sister Scarlet Mary by Julia Peterkin. It wasn't banned here yet but perhaps he'd like to read it before it became illegal.

She played her last move and looked up at him with a very satisfied look. "I win."

"So, you did." He caught a whiff of vinegar and of something else that was less pleasant.

"What will it be? Truth...or..."

"Truth, Miss Fisher."

She leaned back in her chair and took a sip of her drink. She could ask him a series of small, teasing questions. Unfortunately, her track record for winning wasn't as strong as she'd like it to be. No, he started this game resolutely. She would, too.

"Do you ever thinking of me in ... more than ... a ... professional way, Jack?" She heard him clear his throat. "Possibly, in a ... romantic way?"

He shouldn't be surprised, he thought. A truth for her wasn't going to be anything like "who was your first kiss" or "did you ever steal candy?" She wanted to know things about adult Jack. Uncomfortable things that he wouldn't be sharing readily.

He thought of how to respond. Keep it simple.

"Yes."

She looked delighted, he noticed.

"Well, how do you think of me, Jack?"

He took a drink.

"That, Miss Fisher" he looked at her from below hooded eyes "is a question you can ask me on another evening after you win another game."


	3. The Boxer (Pt. 1):  In Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dare #3, Truth #2 and Part #1 of a multi-chapter, undercover dare. Whoo-ee!  
> *******************************************************************************

Whump.

Detective Inspector Jack Robinson found himself flat on his back, arms and legs akimbo, with the air forced out of his lungs. When his vision came back into focus, he found Phryne Fisher on top of him with her knee in his chest and his arms pinned behind his head.

He dropped his head back and rolled his eyes. "It is a boxing match, MIss Fisher. Using judo will get you disqualified."

She made a moue. "If these are crooked games being held, I hardly think the rules are going to be obeyed. Don't you agree, Hugh?" 

She looked over to his constable, who was unmistakably more comfortable now than he was 10 minutes ago when he was trying to teach her how to box. He smiled and started nodding. Then he caught the inspectors glare.

"I believe they will be holding the match in strict accordance to the rules. There is...uh...quite a lot of money at stake even if the events are...er...illegal." 

The inspector stood up and rubbed his hand over forehead, releasing a lock of hair. "Thank you, Constable. Would you start calling to get reports from Geelong and City North displaying the same modus operandi? In the meantime, Miss Fisher and I will finish up here."

"Certainly, sir."

"Miss Fisher, since you are having some difficulty in remembering the boxing moves that you were just shown, we'll just take another 15 minutes to finish your workout before calling it a day for training."

When she wasn't moving he glanced over at her sideways and said "...unless you'd like to forfeit?"

He had to admit that he liked this new development. She has taken on 3 dares to his one truth. He presumed that Phryne thought the odds would have been more in her favor. This particular dare was not one that he had carefully planned out. It was opportunistic, necessary and one that he suspected that he will cause him to suffer as much as she will. 

He went to Wardlow last night after learning from Hugh that Phryne was planning to go undercover in an operation he was already involved in. She had been planning to infiltrate this group as the love interest for his chief suspect. The man was dashing and charismatic, of course, but rumored to be merciless - especially when it came to his lovers. 

Aidan Grimes was an up and coming crime lord in Fitzroy and surrounding areas. There was a significant possibility that his group had connections extending further than Geelong and possibly as far as Adelaide. Indirect proof had already been found that Grimes was involved in the movement of sly grog and opium, and likely a new string of murders associated with this trade.

Phryne could easily play the role of seductress and it was, in some sense, the best way to get the most information. She could handle herself better than most of his officers. She is almost always armed. She keeps control of her weapons. She has just demonstrated the ability to drop a man in less than two seconds. However, having her in this role was one he wanted to avoid at all costs. Aside from any personal feelings he might have for her, there wasn't any reasonable way he could provide her back up.  
He learned that Grimes' pleasure was in organizing fights between women - attractive women. The winners would take on the men. They had a good track record of beating these men, as well. Rumor was that Grimes liked to keep the women in the ring and the women in his bed separate, for reasons unknown. So, when Jack bested Phryne in another game of draughts he saw his opportunity and he took it. His challenge: Phryne would play the fighter and not the lover. And Jack would be her trainer. 

The women she'd come up against were playing for blood. Grimes made certain that the victors were paid handsomely. As these were often from Collingwood, they knew hunger acutely and would do almost anything to ensure they never went back. Grimes, his posse and the group of women involved were smart. They knew people and they knew what they were doing. So, Phryne needed to train to be a champion fighter and their relationship as fighter/trainer needed to be believable.

He looked over at Miss Fisher, who was wearing a small mens singlet over her (just visible) undergarment. This was tucked into a set of mens trousers that had been cut and rolled up at the knees and cinched at the waist with a silk scarf. Her hair was tucked into a turban and true to form, her lipstick not even smudged. He looked away from the bead of sweat that was trickling down her hairline. He was grateful again for her acceptance of this particular dare.

"Sit-ups, Miss Fisher. I'll tell you more of what I know about Grimes and his gang."

She lie on her back with her knees bent. Jack got on the ground to hold her feet. He told her what he knew of Grimes. The trade routes, the known connections within the shipyard and in Chinatown. He shared his knowledge on the lovers Grimes kept and how they tended to be passed around the group when Aiden was finished with them. Phryne stopped whilst at the top of her sit-up and looked at Jack. Her eyes scanned his for additional nuance around this fact. None was forthcoming. She continued with her sit-ups. 

"Pull-ups" She put her hands on the bar and slowly lifted herself. Jack noticed that her arms were already shaking. Her footwork was much more of a benefit than her upper body strength. Jack supported her ankles. "10 more. I'll help." This is where she'll need the most work. 

He continued what he know of the members of the group near Grimes. There were 7 men and 2 women they needed to watch. It was highly unlikely that the would be able to take out the whole gang. But if they were smart and very lucky, they could take out 2-3 major players. Grimes network would be severely handicapped and might lead to his downfall, whether or not they could actually capture him. 

"Now, over to the punching bag." She was starting to look tired now. Jack helped her on with her gloves. "Practice your jab and your hook." She hit harder than expected but her joints weren't lined up they way they should be. "Use your hips to get more power into your swing." He showed her how to press into her back foot to deliver the power through her wrist and out her knuckles. That's better. "Now faster. Get in and out."

"Good...now for the hook...pivot...block your chin...one then the other. Jab then hook."

Jack was impressed. Well, Jack was usually impressed where Phryne was concerned. He wouldn't be totally honest if he said she excelled at taking direction but when it came to picking up skills, she was fast. 

He took a moment to look at her. Arms glistening. Her shirt was almost transparent. Jack felt his heartbeat speed up. Better stop. For his sake, if not hers.

He threw a dry towel to Phryne. There weren't any facilities for women at the Clubhouse but he could make sure she had the showers to herself if she wanted them. She declined. But was it really necessary to say she'd accept if he joined her? Of course it was necessary. He shook his head to himself.

He helped her remove her gloves and the tape beneath them. He examined her hands to make sure that they weren't swollen. 

Before she left the station, he gave her some photos of the american boxer, Jeanne La Mar. They showed her boxing costume and some of the techniques she used. He didn't know much about female boxers but she was, apparently, quite good.

Phryne left the station to refresh herself and then with a promise to visit the House de Fleuri, where she would presumably get some assistance with her own costume. He recalled seeing how she dressed up as Fern. Actually, he recalled this on a frequent basis. He was eager to see her wardrobe for this assignment. If Mrs. La Mar's costume was anything to go by, there wouldn't be much left to the imagination.

They met again at Wardlow to develop their characters and their plans over the next few weeks: 

First, their names: Francis (Frankie) and Jake Boone.

Their relationship: He voted for brother and sister. She voted for husband and wife. They are in a standoff.

Their living arrangements: They are in process of moving to Melbourne. They can't chance going to their real homes as they are likely to be followed. They'll need a more believable living arrangement. Jack is going to research appropriate hotels (for a brother and sister) and Phryne to look for a small bungalow (for a husband and wife).

Their background: He grew up fighting but a war wound kept him from getting back in the ring. He happened to see her in a punch-up and thought she'd be good at it. She was up for it. 4 months later, they were making their living from her winnings.

The next few weeks: Jack would continue working with Hugh to pick up more techniques on boxing and on coaching. In the meantime, Phryne was to start training with different constables from the station. Several needed to brush up on their skills. Jack was hoping the threat of getting whooped by a woman would be enough to get them back in shape.

Phryne suggested they visit the speakeasy associated with Grimes. He reluctantly agreed that this would be a good idea to start making the acquaintance of the people of interest. She was far too happy about that. He suspected that she was more interested in a joint indulgence in the pleasures afforded there. 

Over the next few weeks, Phryne trained several hours a day at the police clubhouse. This caused an interesting turn of events.

As a beautiful woman who came in regularly with treats for the boys, she was always going to be well liked at the station. The rumors of her relationship to the detective inspector were less than flattering but truly speculative. He kept an ear out for anything that was flat-out undignified. He would neither suffer his officers discourtesy in themselves and their station, nor would he accept any disrespect for Miss Fisher herself.

He did not anticipate the support she would gain when she started training with his team of officers.

The first match was set up with Constable Whitman, who had been with City South for almost 2 years and headed toward a promotion. Jack didn't envy Whitman. He would have stepped in first to show the men that he would not ask them anything he was unwilling to do himself. But. He needed to learn the role of her trainer - he had to watch her moves, see how she responded in the ring, get her used to having him coach at the ringside. Jack also realized he was protesting too much.

Now in the ring, Phryne was buoyant, bouncing about and appreciating the opportunity to make contact with a young fit constable dressed in athletic gear. Whitman - like everyone there - looked like he didn't know how to go about hitting a woman. 

Jack decided to hold a briefing to help give the entire team a greater sense of urgency about their assignment of the necessity to give her real practice. From this point forward, they were also to use pseudonyms when in the ring: Frankie for her, Jake for him. As trained professionals, they would be giving her the opportunity to learn her skill and to help them all infiltrate a growing organization that had already resulted in the death of many. They needed to give her a good and fair fight. The rules of the ring followed London Prize Ring Rules.

With that the first round started. They danced around. And around, Phryne gave her first jab. Whitman ducked. She counted with a hook and nailed him. He looked stunned. They started moving again. She faked him out. He went to block and she got a solid jab into his ribcage. His men were on pins and needles. They couldn't believe they were asked to be part of this. 

"Good god man, will you get in there? You know your limits. She won't break." Honestly, his men had no idea how badly they were going to get clobbered over the next few weeks. 

They started going round each other again. Jack could see that Whitman wasn't going to throw a punch. He stopped this and stood to the side of each of them. 

"Frankie. Hold up your glove like this" He held her glove upright from her elbow. "Whitman, give her a jab against the front of her glove to get used to what she can take." He did. At first he used little force but still grimaced when he did it. More. He tried again a little harder. He saw she was fine. Again. Harder still.

"Whitman. Hold your glove up like hers." He did. "Frankie, hit him with the amount of force you can take." She did. "Whitman, return the favor". He did. She didn't break.

"Again" He did. She still didn't break. She didn't cry. She didn't look hurt.

"Other side" They repeated the exercise. 

"Frankie - give him a hook. Whitman, you block." She did, he took a step back. Again. She did, he held his ground.

"Whitman, give her a hook. Frankie, you block." He did, she blocked then she went in for a jab. "Do it again."

He continued guiding the two of them move by move. Then he asked for 2 moves in a row. Then 3. Whitman still wasn't putting all he had into it but at least they were starting to get the feel of the interaction. By the end of the session, Frankie was getting her hits in. Thanks to Hugh's help, Jake was also able to start shouting things out to help improve her technique.

The next morning, they put in Constable Hawley. Hawley was a bit younger with more to prove. He also grew up with 3 sisters. The two boxers started with a similar routine to the day before to get used to the feel of each other. But within 10 minutes, they were actually starting to spar. Hawley was the first who got a good punch in - right into her shoulder. She came up with a cut at got him on the jaw. He jabbed, she blocked. She jabbed, he weaved. Each took many punches. They got in 3 rounds and called it a day.

By the fourth day, men around the ring were yelling into the ring. "C'mon, get 'im Frankie!" "Right hook - right hook!" "Block" Both Jack and Hugh could hear conversations in the hallway starting with "did you see how she..." or "can you believe the way she..." 

The inspector was proud of his men. He thought it would take longer to happen - if it ever did. She gave him a smile. 

"I was right, then?" 

"You were right." 

"It is nice to hear you say so. Truth or dare?"

"Truth, Miss Fisher."

"Don't you mean...Truth, Frankie?" He smiled back at her. "You know what I'm going to ask."

"Remind me."

"Give me an example when your thoughts of me extended beyond your professional boundaries. I want details - don't even think about being stingy."

Jack was silent for a few moments. He pondered which of the answers he would give. He could go for something obvious, like the way he responded when she saw her fan dance. He could go for emotional, like how he responded when she had drunk Foyle's poison by trying to protect him. He opted for the one that he thought about the most.

"I have a photo of you."

Phryne looked at him quizzically. Where would he have gotten my photo? From the society pages? Possible but she doubts it.

"It is from the first (emphasis on FIRST) time I arrested you."

Her eyes lit up. "Aha - it was from the murder at the jazz club, wasn't it? But when did you take my photo?"

"More of a mug shot. Hugh took it"

"I've never seen that one. Describe it to me."

"There is more than one, actually. There are four. The one I'm thinking of has you posing like an Egyptian hieroglyph. One hand is up over your head and the other at your hip. You are looking sideways into the camera." He looks wistful as he describes it to her.

"Why did you keep it."

"It inspires me. It reminds me that I could think differently about things."

"Is that all?"

"Probably not." Jack admitted. "But that is all I can articulate."

"Where do you keep it, Jack?"

"In my pocket" He was well aware that he was giving the game away.

She laughed with glee. "You have it with you?"

He was simpering. "Would you like to see it?"

"Very much."

Jack pulled the photo out of the inside pocket of his suit jacket. He held it up, showing her like one might show a winning ace during a poker tournament.

"May I? " she asked and held her hands out.

She handled the photo reverently, trying to figure out what it would be like to be him looking down at her own face. Her own silly face. 

"Is this considered police property?" 

"It is officially considered 'destroyed police property' along with those arrest records that no longer exist. The arrest records really were destroyed. Too much paperwork, remember?"

She smiled brightly at him and returned the photo.

"On Saturday, I'll be ready to debut Frankie's look. I'm picking up 3 dresses suitable for going out to illegal drinking establishments."

"The timing will be good for making first contact. You won't be ready, though, to bring your skills to a practice ring for another week after that. We need to increase your training regimen starting tomorrow."

Jack gets up to gather his coat and hat.

"I'll be ready."

"Good night, Miss Fisher" 

"Jack" she nods at him. Jack leaves into the night and Phryne goes upstairs to soak her very sore muscles.

The next morning, she is continuing her work out. She goes 4 rounds with Constable Davies. She has completed double the sit-ups she was able to do only 5 days ago. She did 10 pull-ups on her own and another 10 with help. She starts her routine at the punching bag when...

"OW. OW. AAH. OWWWWWWWW." Two sets of startled eyes look her way.

"What's wrong?" 

"My calf...aaaah....aaaaah...oowww. Charlie horse!!!" Hugh looks down to see her leg spasm. He lifts it and guides it in a series of stretches.

"Ah, inspector. Miss Fisher...er...Frankie...is working out like any other boxer would. Usually the trainer would be giving rub downs after every workout to prevent from cramping like this."

Jack looks at Hugh...horrified. This is something he did not expect.

"The trainers at the ring will expect to see you do this, too. Otherwise, they will think you aren't serious about protecting your fighter."

Jack swallowed, expressly avoiding Phryne's eye. "You'd better walk me through it, Constable Collins."

Hugh pulled a bottle out of his bag. "This is a combination of witch hazel, arnica, alcohol and almond oil." He poured some into his hand and some into Jack's hand.

"Frankie can you...uh" Hugh blushed, screwed up his eyes and then opened them again. He had never touched a woman this way in his life. He didn't think this would happen until his wedding night and he certainly didn't think it would happen with anyone other than his Dottie. He had to remind himself that this was professional and lives were at stake. "Will you lie down on your stomach?"

Hugh showed the inspector how to cover the muscles with the oil and make sure to work it into the joints especially. He put extra effort into the muscles and ligaments around the back of her knees. Then, he did the same with her shoulders. Hugh looked at her back, which was currently covered by a shirt and made eye contact with the inspector. "Is it okay if I just describe this part? I don't feel comfortable without her shirt on." 

Jack's jaw dropped and Phryne's head snapped around to look at both of them. This was a lovely development!

"Uh, yes miss - please turn over." Hugh put more oil into his hand and into the professors. He walked through the joint manipulation on the front side of her body. He focused on her ankles and knees while pointing out some of the dangers of shin splints. He showed Jack how to stretch her thigh over and work the ligaments on her hips - all while trying to ignore the fact that his face was beet red.

Hugh taught Jack how to rotate the joints at Phryne's shoulders, elbows, wrists and fingers. The muscles just lower than her elbows needed the most attention to avoid build up of bad form. Next were her hands. Hugh showed how to circle a fist in Phryne's open palm and then apply pressure with thumbs to release the muscles from her hands after being in gloves for so long. Finally - Hugh demonstrated how to apply a series of stretches, compressions and light vibrations to help the muscles relax after a hard workout. "Really, it is best to do this just after the workout and before taking a shower."

"How is your leg, Mis...Frankie?" Phryne was in absolute heaven. 

"It isn't hurting nearly as much."

"Good. You should probably put some ice on it tonight. Maybe tomorrow should be a light day of exercise, inspector?"

Jack nodded.

"I'll just head back up stairs, shall I" Hugh left the room fairly quickly.

"Help me up, Jack?" 

"Jake."

"Help me up? Jake?"

Jack helped her to her feet and winced as he saw that she was limping. He wasn't sure she could drive so he took her home, waited for her to get cleaned up and changed. Then he got her settled on the couch in her parlor with some ice on her calf.

This whole time and she didn't say a word. But he can see it bursting out of her.

Jack got up and prepared to leave.

"Jake?"

He turned. She was sparkling with amusement. 

"THAT happens every day."


	4. The Boxer, pt. 2:  Jake and Frankie Boone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Detective Inspector Jack Robinson and Phryne Fisher are now in character and living under one roof.
> 
> ****************************************

"Good evening, Miller". 

"Frankie" He looked sheepish.

"Hello Hawley". 

"Miss Frankie." He looked flustered.

"Constable Dunnett" 

"You look beautiful, Miss." Doing his best to look debonair.

"Mikey" 

"......" Looking hungry.

"Joey" 

"Good evening, Miss Boone." Looking anxious.

"Constable Whitman"

"You look stunning, miss." Looking awed.

"Constable Collins"

"Good evening, Frankie. Will Dot be joining us for the briefing?" Bless him...

"Jake"

"Miss Boone" Well, at least she got a head tilt.

Jack was looking rather splendid. He wore a black suit and tie over a white shirt. The new pencil mustache, while not the usual "Jack", suited Jake very well. Jake was definitively hungrier and edgier than Jack, as well as more serious. Perhaps it was the seriousness of the case but Phryne wasn't certain that she'd be able to have all that much fun in the next few days. Well, with *him* anyway.

She could tell that "Frankie" was a hit as well. She wore her hair in platinum blonde finger waves with minimal eye shadow and deep red lipstick. She wore a cameo pink gown made of delicate satin. It had a high halter top with a criss crossed scarf draped between her breasts, wrapped around her lower back and wrapped a second time at the crest of her hips and tied with a loose knot in front of her pelvis. The dress rippled seductively as she walked or as she crossed her legs. She wore elbow length gloves and a thick ostrich boa, both in white. In her hair, she wore a rhinestone comb. The ladies from House de Fleuri said that she looked decadent and ahead of her time. Two things she adored to be called.

The detective inspector glanced sideways at her. She was stunning as usual. He was hoping that his men couldn't tell that she was going without a brassiere. Look at her eyes, man. Look at her eyes.

He also reminded himself that he was her brother, an arrangement that was made after he beat her in a foot race at the beach earlier in the day. 

Jack cleared his throat to start the briefing.

_"Miller, Hawley, Joey and Mikey have been out doing reconnaissance. Miller and Hawley, who have been posing as boxers down at the club, have seen a series of envelopes change hands between Robert Sharp - seen here - and Melinda Grieg - seen here. Grimes shows up at the ring daily to watch the warm ups. He has not been seen to play a more active roll in either setting up matches, exchanging envelopes or making any plans associated with the exchange of envelopes._

_Joey has been watching the trade at Chinatown. He has been approached to do a run of sly grog but made a show of turning it down for the sake of his mother. Joey will return to the person who made this offer tomorrow night under the pretense that his mother is now sick and he needs the money._

_Mikey has been watching the dockyard. He has seen Melinda Grieg speaking with this man - Thomas Hedgeson. It appears as if they have been making travel arrangements but we have no evidence to back this up._

_Constables Whitman and Dunnett will act as back-up for Jake and Frankie Boone. They will know where we are at all times._

_Constable Collins will act as coordinator and messenger. If you need to get a message to me, go through him first then to Whitman and Dunnett._

_This operation is not about vice, though we will be recording what we see and collecting evidence if it can be done without jeopardizing our operation. We are looking for a evidence and reasons behind a string of murders. No one breaks cover without 2 other officers present and engaged._

_Tonight, Jake and Frankie will visit the warehouse that has been set up as a speakeasy with a boxing ring in the rear of the building. Miller and Hawley will be there. You two - keep close to us. The goal this evening is for Jake to make first contact with any of the players. The secondary goal is to observe the fights and the fighters. Tomorrow, we get a warm-up fight for Frankie._

_Any questions?"_

The group at the station dispersed. Jake took Frankie for a night out.

They arrived at the club-come-arena, gave the password and made their way in. There was easily two hundred people in the front part of the house. Jake went to the bar and brought back a gin-and-tonic for her, a whiskey for him.

Frankie gave him a wink and asked if he was ready for a dance with his sister. Apparently, this did not amuse him. 

"Boxing ring, then?"

They made their way to the back of the warehouse, where there were, perhaps, fifty people present. The first match - a starter match - was between a scrappy lass who was in her early teens and a stropping heavyset girl who might have been eleven or twelve. Their battle was more emotion than finesse but it was clear that both young ladies, if you could call them that, were serious about learning their craft.

Thirty minutes later, Grimes came in with 4 others. Two men and two women. The men appeared to be underlings but important ones. One of the women was holding onto his arm possessively. The other surveying the scene much like a queen would over her domain. Though both women were quite attractive, the latter was clearly Mad Moira Banks - the woman he hoped would get in a ring with Frankie in the coming days.

Grimes and Moira held court in the room together. In their slow tour, they greeted punters, mainly. It appeared as if they were slowly making way to the two detectives. If this was the case, then Miller and Hawley did their job. 

Jake made a point of staying by Frankie's side. He was leaning into her ear sharing all that he had seen in the ring and outside of it. Grimes and Mad Moira came to stop just to the side of them. Moira was seizing up Frankie but Grimes was devouring her with his eyes. Apparently the practice of separating business from pleasure when it came to fighters didn't apply when the fighters weren't working for him.

Frankie gave an appreciative glance to her would-have-been-lover before turning to the fighter stood next to him. 

Jake saw Miller move a bit closer so he could hear the exchange.

"Frankie Boone" she held her hand out to Moira, who shook it with a little more pressure than necessary. She tilted her head over to her companion. "This is Jake."

Grimes spoke next. "Ah, I hear you are..." he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence.

"She's me wife". Jake slid his hand around Frankie's waist and pulled her closer. "Just got married, we did."

Frankie responded by throwing an arm up over Jake's shoulder. She took the liberty of flicking her tongue in his ear as a gesture of affection. Jake tilted Frankie's chin up with his index finger and gave her a warm, proud husband-like look.

"It is all so new!" Frankie purred. Then to Moira she asked "Will you be going on later tonight?"

"Nah. I haven't been able to find any good opposition."

"Shame" Frankie demurred. "That might be changing soon, I hear."

"Glad to see it."

With that, Grimes and Moira finished their tour of the arena and settled in to watch the remaining fights for the evening.

Jake took Miller aside and asked him to get word to the others of the change in relationship between the Boones'.

At the end of the evening, the two detectives made their way to their new home - a safe house that had some additional furniture and decor added to it. It had been set up for brother and sister so the clothes would need to be shifted around. Nevertheless, his intention was to make sure they continued to sleep in separate rooms.

Jake looked outside the window. Dunnett make the signal that they were not followed home that evening. The curtains were closed.

"That was an interesting development earlier this evening."

Jake looked at her. "Would you rather that I didn't?"

"I actually rather appreciated it." She gibed "But, then again, I appreciate many things about you...Mr. Boone."

He wanted badly to acknowledge her show of appreciation earlier in the evening. Considering the sleeping quarters and lack of chaperone, he decided not to bring it up.

"Have I told you that you make a lovely chameleon?"

"You haven't ... but I could say the same about you. That mustache looks very dashing on you, Jake." She smiled.

They stood awkwardly for a few moments. Right about now, he'd be heading to her foyer to grab his hat and coat before heading out the door. 

"I think I'd like to take a bath before bed. Do you need...?" 

"No, not at all. I have a book with me. I'll get ready after you do."

He heard her run a bath and was grateful that the station had recently invested in new plumbing to guarantee plenty of hot water. Jack pulled out his new book "The Bridge of San Luis Rey." It was recently recommended by Miss Leigh. He had kept in touch after the murder at her bookshop and found that she was able to introduce him to many new authors. This one was a recent winner of the Pulitzer Prize and, in his opinion, beautifully written.

He was just finishing the chapter about Dona Maria when he heard a loud gasp coming from the bathroom. His first thought was that they might have been followed after all. He got up and knocked on the door, hoping he wasn't too late. "Are you alright?"

"Yes! Sorry!" then he heard stifled laughter.

Oh god, he thought. She was pleasuring herself! 

He walked back to the chair and tried to read his book again. Honestly, that woman! He heard the water splash and the tub start to drain. The sounds following that led him to think she was drying herself and putting on her bedclothes. Phryne peeked her head around the corner to tell a stern-looking Jack that the bathroom was all his. At least she had the decency to look sheepish, he thought.

How was he supposed to go in there now? What about when he is going to take a bath? He decides to make getting ready for bed a quick business before going into his room. 

"Good night Jake" she responded through her closed door.

"Good night."

Later that evening, something wakes him. It takes him a few moments to realize where he is. He hears...heavy breathing? He shuts his eyes tightly. Then, he hears a moan. She's at it again. Then, he hears her moaning his name. Good god! 

He puts his pillow over his ears and to shut out the sound. He lays there for ages, not sleeping. Part of him is very, very annoyed at her behavior. This is a serious case and they both needed to be rested to operate at their peak. There was another part of him musing on the fact that it was *his* name she was moaning. 

Jake woke first in the morning. Actually, he had been awake for some time but it was the first to get out of bed between the two of them. 

He took the decision that he would be disciplined in this arrangement and, whether she liked it or not, she would be as well. If he wasn't going to get sleep because she couldn't control herself around hot water, it was up to him (as the head of this undercover operation) to do something about it. He wasn't thinking clearly - he knew that. Nevertheless, he is a man of action. And, in his experience, a good, cold shower always did the trick when needing to refocus. To that end, he went to the new hot water heater and disabled it.

Then he took a cold shower.

Then he got dressed: undershirt, skivvies, braces, rough-wear breeches and wool plaid shirt open at the neck. He added canvas gym shoes and his most worn fedora.

Then he went to the kitchen to put the kettle on for a cup of tea. He allowed himself a smile, thinking of the last cup of tea he had with Miss Fisher. He started making breakfast for two: eggs, tomatoes and toast. He knocked on her door to wake her. There was no way he was going to chance walking into her room to wake her...especially after what he learned about her last night. 

He dished up the two plates and served up 2 cups of tea. Put utensils and breakfast on the table.

Phryne. 

Frankie, he reminded himself.

She was wearing a white satin robe, wrapped tightly. Her hair was mussed and she had sleepy eyes. "Good morning, Jake" she said with a groggy smile. "This smells divine." (You look divine, he thought) 

She sat down and gave him an adoring look as if he had delivered a feast.

"Eat up, Frankie. If all goes well, you'll have your first match today."

They reviewed the days plans while they finished breakfast. He tidied up the kitchen and let her get on with becoming "Frankie". 

The shower came on and he heard a shriek. The sound of water continued for another few minutes. Then out of the corner of his eye, he sees a wet and unhappy Frankie dressed in a towel. "The water is freezing! Can you fix it?!?!?"

He made a show of looking at the heater then apologizing to her. He couldn't see what was wrong. This is such a short term assignment, perhaps she wouldn't mind making do for the next day or so?

With that, he went to the gym to see about setting up a warm-up match. He was expected and the discussions went well. They have a test match in just a few hours. There is plenty of time to go back to the house, take Frankie through a small workout, get changed and get back to the gym for her debut.

When he got home, however, he was surprised to see Burt and Cec's cab in front. What are *they* doing here? They are going to blow their cover!

Jake walked into the house to see the Burt, Cec and Frankie looking at the water heater. Cec is explaining how the heater works and why he can see what is wrong with it. Burt sees the inspector and chimed in with his two-cents. 

"For such a new hot water heater, it would have to be tampered with in order for it not to work. See? You can see how it was unplugged right here." Burt pointed at the offending disconnection. 

Frankie walked over to Jake with an astonished, and not altogether pleased look in her eye. Jake took a breath and prepared for the reckoning. An angry whisper was directed toward him "Did *you* do this?"

He pursed his lips and started to stare her down. Then he rolled his eyes and whispered back "You have no idea how thin these walls are!". 

He gave her a meaningful look. She gave him one right back. He was going to pay for this.

Burt and Cec make a move to leave. Jake walks over to open and hold the door open for them. Burt is looking chuffed as he passes by Jake, who is staring at him.

"Traitor."


	5. The Boxer, pt. 3:  Just the Facts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frankie (Phryne) and Jake (Jack) Boone spend the day learning about the case and a bit about each other. There may even be a little rub down scene but only if you read very...very...closely.
> 
> *******************************

"So, *that's* why Aidan Grimes keeps personal pleasure and business separate". Detective Inspector Jack Robinson thinks to himself. 

This insight was courtesy of watching his fellow detective casing the boxing ring. Based on the discussion they had coming here from their temporary home, he was quite certain that it didn't have to do with being nervous about this test match. It more than likely had something to do with a cold shower.

He settles in to watch Frankie in the ring with a trainer's eye. He was also watching out for anything odd happening in the larger warehouse. Both Miller and Hawley are in the background. Miller is playing the role of boxer trying to work his up through the ranks so he's paying most attention to the fighting and how matches get set up. Hawley is a punter taking bets on the side so from Grimes perspective, he is there for intelligence. For a good portion of his winnings, of course. 

The match starts with the two women starting to dance around each other. Frankie easily blocks the first punch and waits again for the boxer to come at her. Frankie blocks then jabs and watches the other woman fall back into the ropes. This boxer doesn't look like she's in much shape to be doing this. They come back together and the other woman swings wildly at Frankie, who ducks. Frankie stops the match.

"Oy, what is this? Are you going to bring someone who can fight, or what?" She yells in the direction of Robert Sharp, one of the two men they saw with Grimes last night and the one who set up this pairing.

Sharp comes over. "Out of the ring, Bess." The woman starts leaving the ring. "Go sleep it off."

Sharp looks around the room. "Miller! You up for fighting a sheila?" Miller put on a sneer and lurched over. "Yeah, I'll sort her."

Frankie returned over to Jake. "Her arms were covered in needle marks. She shouldn't have been in this ring."

Jake nodded to her and looked over at Miller. He saw Grimes and Moira Banks come out of an office to watch Miller and Frankie.

Jake watched Miller get into the ring. "Frankie, you've sparred with Miller before. He'll play to your strengths. Don't give away too much of how you think. That's what Grimes is going to want to see. He is trying to pick apart your strengths and weaknesses. Be aggressive enough to be interesting. Use your defense and speed sparingly. You want to have those be a surprise during the actual match."

Jake had another thought about Miller. Earlier today, Jake and Frankie got an update from Constable Collins on how each set of undercover observations was going. 

Collins took out his notebook to share a quote from Miller about events from the previous evening. "He made sure to tell the other men that you 'took one for the team', sir" Hugh closed his notebook. "I think that what he means is that...well...if one of the other men was going to play Frankie's husband, some of the spouses might get mad." Collins looked at the Inspector knowingly. Jake knew exactly of the moment being referred to and thought that Miller could do with a reminder on who was boss.

"Oh, and Frankie" Phryne looked back at him "Remember to follow through with this punches, eh? Make sure you deliver with power. No holding back there." She flashed him a questioning look, then nodded as she walked in to meet Miller in the ring.

Miller started shuffling about and trying to get behind her as if he was trying to start with her off balance. That was not going to happen. Where he bounced, she slunk. Where he sneered, she was cool. She gave a test jab. Easy block. She came back with a harder jab followed by a hook. That one landed solidly.

They each took a few more steps. He landed an upper cut but she had already been ducking away. Not much impact there. Her upper body circled back round and she delivered a jab to his rib cage followed immediately by her own upper cut. The maximum force delivered was in part due to the descending motion of his chin that was part of his response to her first of two blows.

Miller got up, blocked his body with his arms and gave himself a shake. He genuinely wasn't expecting that one. 

When they had maneuvered themselves so that Phryne was facing away from people watching them fight she mouthed "sorry". Then she steadily pummeled him over the next several rounds.

Jack would have felt sorry for him but he knew that Miller had already bested several of the good fighters frequenting the place. He was going to get ribbed for sure but not as badly as he might have been. Grimes and his team knew what a good fight looked like. They should be able to see that this match was won by her and not lost by him.

Sharp approached Jake. The two men looked each other up before Sharp spoke "you have a good fighter there." 

Jake nodded. "Does this mean that you have an offer to make us?"

"There is a match with Annie West tonight. The challenger won't be able to make it. Can your girl show up?"

Jake looked at Frankie, who heard the entire discussion. She jerked her chin upwards in agreement. She was going to have to get through a fight or two before getting the chance to take Mad Moira Banks. Details were finalized and they agreed on a time to meet back at the warehouse. The two undercover detectives started their way back home. On the way out of the warehouse, he caught Hawley's ear. "Make sure to give Miller my *personal* thanks for taking one for the team, will you?" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hawley crack a smile.

They left the warehouse and Jake suggested they have a short workout at home to keep her muscles warm as part of a slow cool down. 

A week into the training schedule, he joined her in the calisthenics part of her workout. It was nicer than doing it by himself and found that, like most of their relationship, they had an easy rapport.

She was holding down his feet while he was doing sit-ups. "How did Frankie and Jake meet?" 

They were lucky not to have been asked that question. Their relationship as brother and sister would have been easy to explain. Now that they were playing husband and wife, they needed to get their story straight.

"They grew up together in the same neighborhood. He was her older brothers' best friend."

"His was Timmy. Timmy Duncan."

"Yes, sounds good." He thought for a moment more and took a risk. "She was always following them around and meddling in their business."

"No, that wasn't it at all. Jake had always been madly in love with Frankie and only became friends with Timmy when Frankie wouldn't give him the time of day. It was quite sad, really."

Jake stopped at the top of his sit-up to make eye contact with Frankie. "Frankie was always very imaginative. We let her hang out with us anyway." 

He continued.

"Jake and Timmy went to war together. Only, Timmy never came home. Common enough story. From then, Frankie and Jake got closer....your turn"

They switched places.

"Did you notice who showed up today? Grimes and Moira were there but they didn't talk to anyone but each other. The two men from last night were also both here. Robert Sharp was the one who made all of the arrangements for the fighters. I saw the other man go into the office."

"What else?"

"Those needle marks, Jake. There is something to that. You already said that you suspect some link to the opium trade. Is it Joey that is trying to get a job in Chinatown?"

"It is. I also had a thought about why Grimes doesn't get physically or romantically entwined with his fighters, even though they are just as attractive and often more interesting than the women he does decide to...." He let that sentence finish itself.

"Oh, I think he's intimidated by them. Strong women, Jake. Not everyone can appreciate them." she said purposefully.

"I suspect it has something to do with keeping the fighters on edge." Frankie looked at him wide eyes. Was this JACK thinking this way?

"So, you're saying that he not only withholds himself but he doesn't let any fighter let off steam in an ... amorous way ... so that they will fight better?"

Jake nodded. 

"Pushups"

"Well, that *is* an interesting theory. We shall see if we can get a more conclusive answer on that."

The two detectives continued their push-ups side by side. She did about half the number he did. She stopped. Then, she sat up and looked at him.

"You aren't working nearly hard enough" She stood up and stood just next to him. He stopped in plank position. 

"Mind if I catch a lift?" She didn't wait for his answer before she sat down on his backside and rotated herself around so that she was lying along his body facing up. He continued his pushups. He was going for 20 more, as she well knew. After counting off 10, she called out "Mush, mush Mr. Boone! We are going to be late!"

He tried one more then gave up, exasperated. He let his arms collapse underneath him and rolled over, pushing her off at the same time.

"And what are we going to be late for, Mrs. Boone?"

"Why my very favorite part of the day, Mr. Boone. It is time for my rubdown!" She looked to the ceiling with a dramatically dreamy look on her face. "And I suspect that today, I might get an exceptionally good one."

"Why so, Mrs. Boone?"

"If your theory is correct, and you insist in being an...inattentive...husband, your very survival may be at risk. I would be verrrry nice to me if I were you." Blink. Blink. Blink.

And now, it starts - he thinks.

She gets up gleefully and saunters off to the bathroom to get a fresh, clean towel and the bottle of wonderfulness he uses for her post-workout massage.

"Shall we start face up, then?" As she lays the towel out on the floor. She heels off her shoes and removes all but the essentials. Rather, the essentials as Jack would consider them to be. She is lying face up wearing only her workout gear: shorts, a singlet and (thank goodness, he thinks) undergarments.

Jake starts with her feet, the way Hugh taught him to. He rotated her ankles and palpitated the muscles in her calves, paying lose attention to the tops of her shins muscles close to her knees. He kneeled down on one leg, while holding hers. He pushed her leg forward and back to release her knee and her hip joint. Then, still holding her foot, let her leg drop to the side. He supported her leg under her knee and pushed in large circles to release her hip muscles and then crossed over her body to release her back.

She took a deep breath and sighed.

This particular business, was unnerving. He worked hard to keep his mind to the task at hand - that only made it worse. Then he tried to pretend she was a man. Fat chance. He tried recalling unpleasantness from previous crime scenes. Tried thinking of the stacks of paperwork he'd have to tackle once this operation was over.

He heard her moan. He paused for just a moment.

"That wasn't..." she furrowed her brow "...too *loud* for you, was it?" 

He couldn't help but guffaw. Then, she started giggling. Something about the moment struck them both as being incredibly funny. Next thing, they were both roaring with laughter and wiping tears away from their eyes. She would stop and try to catch her breath and then he would look at her again and they would start laughing all over again. 

"My stomach. It hurts!" Still laughing. Then they both took deep long breaths, making sure not to look at each other.

"Alright, shall we try this again?" Deep breath. One more...

He looked at her and she nodded. He couldn't stop grinning and she was still ragged on her inhale, trying to calm down. Her shoulders still shaking with mirth and ready to erupt again. They looked into each other's eyes, beaming. 

"Thank you for doing this, Phryne. You are making a huge difference in this case and you've made quite an impression on my men."

"Well, I will do almost anything for justice and...almost anything again to help *you*, Inspector." She grinned as she evoked part of a discussion they had on top of a train some time ago.

He moved to the other side and started again. She closed her eyes to enjoy the exceptional massage she was being treated to. As per her request, he was taking longer than usual. Going slower than usual. Spending more time on the knots that had been building up with the extensive workouts of late.

He lifted her arms behind her head one at a time to release her shoulders. Whilst there, he pressed down along her hip to stretch her entire side. He laced his fingers inside hers to rotate her wrists in one direction and then the other. 

He sat behind her head and interlaced his hands at the base of her neck, where he applied a small traction before massaging her shoulders and neck.

"Turn over"

She rotated her shoulders languorously before holding herself up and rotating her hips underneath her. "Will you do my back this time?" She looked up hopefully.

He nodded.

She kept her torso down while she peeled off the singlet and popped the snaps of her brassiere. She slid out of the straps to give him full access to her back.

It caught him off guard that she was so unassuming in this motion. It didn't seem to bother ...well, it would never bother her...occur to her, then, that she was almost nude, that they were alone and that his hands were all over her. 

It had been a long time since he was with a woman. This felt equally as intimate. He did try to remind himself that he was on duty and that this was part of the role he needed to play. His hands had other ideas. Despite any instruction he gave to his hands to strictly keep this professional, they couldn't help but respond to anything her body was asking of them. A new ripple of muscle here wanted a soft press. A circle of warmth there needed a deeper touch to work itself through. A coiled muscle was asking to be stretched. Her fingers wanted to be engulfed in his. He watched her respond to wide strokes with his full hand down the long muscles of her back and legs. He felt her muscles come away from her joints as he rotated and applied soft vibrations. In the end, even her hair called him. He applied little circles all over her scalp and combed her hair with her fingers.

"Phryne" he whispered. She was asleep. He reached up to the couch to pull a blanket over her. She napped while he read on a chair, nearby.

A hour or so later, she woke. 

He look down at her with some amusement "Good morning, sleepyhead. Are you hungry?"

"Famished." 

"If it is immediate gratification you need, then we should eat the food Mr. Butler packed."

"Do I sense another option?"

"I brought some things to make cheese and onion pie. But it will take an hour to make it."

"I adore cheese and onion pie! I haven't had it in ages. Can we have it for tomorrow?"

"We can." His eyes were smiling at her. "Why don't you get back into your Frankie character while I pull lunch together. I'm expecting Dunnett to come by soon to give me an update."

"Wait, Dunnett's coming over? What if I was still asleep?"

"I would have left you there so he could see you drooling."

"I don't drool" she said with a hair flip and a pivot as she went to get back into character.

Dunnett knocked on the door just as she came out of her bedroom. 

"Constable Dunnett" she opened the door and let him in.

"Mrs. Boone", he tipped his hat. 

Dunnett filled them in over lunch. The organization of this group is starting to become clearer. 

_"Robert Sharp organizes the fights. The other man they saw earlier is Tooney Green, their accountant. Three people came into see Sharp and Green over the past several days. It looks like one of them is in charge of booze, another in charge of opium and another that is in charge of gambling. Sharp coordinates some sort of messages between the group via Melinda Grieg. She has been seen at the dockyard with Thomas Hedgeson, who seems to be organizing something at the dockyard. It might be another speakeasy. Neither Grimes nor Mad Moira Banks looks to have any direct involvement in these communications but it is clear that Sharp, Grieg and Hedgeson are following their orders. We just don't know how yet."_

_"Joey found out that the people who come into the organization get used up pretty quickly. No one seems to know what happens to them. For example, there was a young fighter by the name of Clara. It looked like she became addicted to opium. There were some rumors that she was forced into trying it and then when she was addicted, the gang used the opium like a kind of insurance to make her continue working for them. Then one day, she's gone. She might be dead but no one has seen a body."_

Frankie added _"That may be connected to Bess. She was meant to be the one I fought with this morning" she said as an aside to Dunnett. "She had needle marks in her arms and was in no position to fight a fig leaf. They told her to sleep it off but I wonder where she is now?"_

Dunnett continued _"Apparently Grimes also has this thing about women. He tries to get fighters that are really attractive to get more money out of the punters for betting. But, he makes sure they aren't touched. You know - they have to be totally unattached or else he gets rid of them."_

Jake speaks knowingly "Hmmm. That sounds very interesting. Have you heard why this is so important to him?"

Dunnett replied _"There is supposed to be this thing where if you have...er" he looked at Frankie "well, you know...you don't win as much. Since he makes as much money on fights as he does everything else, he considers this protecting his investment. Smart business. That's what Robert Sharp said."_

Frankie delivered a quick grimace in Jake's direction, who would be sure to be collecting on a dare sooner rather than later.

Frankie perked up. Something just clicked into place for her. _"What if the ex-lovers and ex-fighters of the Grimes group are treated in the same way? What if they are coerced into becoming addicted to heroin? But then...then what? Does anyone know where any of these women might be? Could it have anything to do with the events happening at the dockyard?"_

_"We've got 4 hours until Frankie's fight this evening. We might see something there. Dunnett, ask around in Vice to see if they can spare any additional men. I want Mikey and Joey to have personal back-up. I think they are going to see something first. We should get another 2 to rotate with you and Whitman. We should alright with Miller and Hawley. Mikey, Joey, Miller and Hawley need to find out where these women are that have downgraded through the ranks. I don't know how quickly they go through people but these might be our murder victims. If that is the case, we clearly haven't found the bodies. Tell Miller and Hawley that he also need to get some background on Bess and Annie West."_

_"Frankie, you and I will be tourists in Chinatown this afternoon. We'll try to find out who might be training other female fighters in the area. Perhaps there is something more to learn there" Then he speaks to Dunnett. "Tell Whitman to follow us closely. Then organize the additional men with Collins. Make sure that everyone understands that they are not to break cover unless there are at least 3 people on the scene that are engaged and aware of the situation. If cover breaks too soon, we could lose all of it."_

Jake and Frankie strolled down sidewalks enclosed by Lonsdale, Spring, Bourke and Swanston Streets. Once they needed to duck into an alley to avoid coming face to face with her recent lover, Lin. She briefly wondered if he might be able to share any insight. Now that he's married into a family that is tied into the opium trade, to his chagrin, he might have more information about who is involved in what. Jake pondered that and thought it would be a good idea but only when they were out of character.

They saw Joey, who appeared to be following a man on a mission. He nodded off the inspector. It was looking to be an uneventful trip when they saw none other than Robert Sharp ducking into one of the opium dens. Jake and Frankie went to follow him. They couldn't get through the front door unnoticed so they crept around to the back alley and tried to find a rear entrance to the building they thought he might have gone into. 

It was very dark inside, despite it being fairly light outside. It stank of stale sweat, urine and vomit. Desperate hush made up the backdrop. When Frankie and Jake's eyes got used to the dark, they saw people lying against the wall, on dirty mattresses. They were mostly women but not all. In the far corner of the room, Sharp was speaking with Melinda Grieg. It looked as if they were making plans of some sort and pointing out some people. Jake and Frankie quickly pulled back against the wall, hoping they weren't seen. Something was happening tonight.

Jake and Frankie returned outside and clocked that they were next to Bullens Lane. They had done all they could do here. Frankie needed to get back home in order to get ready for her match.

"What do you think, Jake?"

She was looking over her shoulder to make sure her backside was covered. It was. Just.

She was wearing a peacock blue, single piece number. If you could call it a number. It was practically painted on her. There was a sequined applique at the front of her right shoulder. There was also a fabric belt with a similar applique at the front of her waist. The neckline was low and square. It was held up by a single strap that started just front of one arm and ended at the other after going round to the back side of her neck. She was wearing nothing else other than matching blue flat Mary Jane shoes.

"Uh...it is..." he swallowed and for some reason was giving her a slow, sideways sort of nod. "No...that's okay. I'll drive."

Clearly, Jake was having some completely different discussion in his head than the one they were having together. She may not have received the answer she was looking for but she certainly got response she wanted.


	6. The Boxer, pt. 4 - How They Caught The Bad Guy

Frankie pulled Annie West into a hold. It is an illegal move but it is her only chance at communicating with her. "What is going to happen to you tonight if you lose this match?"

Annie recoiled back into the ropes behind her. She is looking wildly about the club. People are shouting and the lights are pointed at them. Annie is looking disoriented. Frankie is treating her as gingerly as anyone possibly can in a boxing ring. 

At the end of the round, Frankie is in the corner with Jake. "We can't let her lose and walk out of here. Something horrible is going to happen to her."

Jake can't move away from ringside to tell Miller or Hawley to get to Annie first. At the same time, it is essential that Frankie win in order to get closer to a match with Moira Banks. 

Best do it quickly so they have a shot at getting her out of this club themselves. Annie West is knocked out next round. Frankie and Jake try to get to their men to make sure they track Annie. They turn around. She's already gone!

Hawley runs outside to see a car drive off. Whitman is waiting nearby..."did you see the way they went? Follow them!" 

Frankie and Jake still inside, playing their role in the rush of excitement that comes with a win. Both Frankie and Jake get slaps on the shoulders. Payoffs are happening in the background. Punters are recapping the highlights of the match and talking about who else might put on a good show.

Grimes and Banks approach. 

"I do hope that you will be introducing me to some talent fairly soon. My patience is wearing thin." Frankie says as she meets Moira's face. It was a gamble assuming that she was the decision maker between the two. "If I'm going to go through all the trouble to dress up for one of these events, I'd like the opportunity to break a sweat. Know what I mean?"

"If it's just a sweat you are looking for, I'm sure we can accommodate you now," leered Grimes.

"While I appreciate the offer, Mr, Grimes, I'm fairly certain that us women can work this out." Frankie dismissed him before returning to Moira with her full attention. 

Grimes made a move to step in but Moira stopped him with her eyes. 

Instead, Moira stepped into Frankie. Frankie matched her movement. Their lips just inches from each other. 

"You look bored, Moira Banks. Why don't we do something about that?"

"Tomorrow."

"Where."

"Come here at 2pm. You'll get directions."

"Can't wait."

Moira turned to walk away. Frankie lifted her eyes toward Grimes and twinkled her fingers at him. Jake made a show of looking unconcerned throughout that communication. Though, it was most definitely a show.

Moira and Grimes went back into the office. Robert Sharp was standing next to the office door looking at them with interest before he, too, went into the office.

"Let's go."

Frankie and Jake went back to the safe house. She was pacing back and forth. He was leaning against the wall. Neither of them was comfortable doing nothing. Most importantly, they wanted to find Annie. And Bess, who had not been seen since the afternoon.

"Lin! Let's go back to see Lin. He might know something."

Jack hated this idea.

"C'mon Jake. If we are lucky, I'll also get the chance to introduce you to his communist, fighter bride, Camellia. Its her family in the trade so she might be the one who is more useful."

Frankie and Jake changed into suitable outfits for a night out at one of many disreputable dancing establishments located in Chinatown. If they were followed, they could easily improvise to make their plans suit their attire. 

Camellia brought them into the back room where they could have some privacy, where her husband joined them soon thereafter. Lin was openly gazing at in his ex-lover in a way that was demonstrated he would welcome a rekindling of her amorous affection. Jack/Jake was working to put away his "over my dead body" face. In the meantime, Camellia and Phryne/Frankie had greeted each other warmly and were getting on with the business at hand. True to Lin's word, they were quickly working to get out of the trade. The newly married couple still had several warehouses but kept the ones for silk separate from the ones for less...legal...goods. Camellia shared the location of several suspect warehouses that her family was not involved with and that she had heard rumors about. 

Suddenly, Dunnett shows up in the room. "We need to go, now." They meet at the safe house, where Mikey, Hawley and Whitman are waiting. Mikey was covered in cuts and bruises.

Frankie's nursing instincts from the war has been drilled into her. Before she even thinks about it, she gets a bowl of warm water, a washcloth and first aid gear and starts tending to Mikey's wounds. None of them need stitches but some will look ugly for a while.

Hawley starts to inform the duo: "Both Bess and Annie were at the warehouse, along with several other women and a few men. They set up these fights so that the last man standing gets to walk away. The other one..." Hawley looked at Mikey, who was looking quite green.

Hawley continues "Annie and Bess were against each other and Annie won. Bess might be dead. It looked like they killed her but they didn't leave a body."

Whitman added "Joey was one of two people that hauled Annie away. He's gotta know where she was taken but I don't know how to find him. We weren't able to get his back up in time for this evening."

"Who else was there?" 

"All of them - Grimes, Mad Moira, Melinda Grieg, Robert Stack. Hey, Mikey - you said that you saw Hedgeson there, too." Mikey nodded.

"Mikey, what happened to your face?"

"A guy decided he didn't like me. It didn't seem like the place to turn the other cheek so when his hand met my face, I returned the favor. Might be 'cause I found this." It was a photo of Grimes and a very healthy looking Bess. 

"Did you happen to see Grimes reaction when Annie and Bess were fighting?" Mikey shook his head.

"Dunnett, when is the last time you got sleep?"

"I'm not bad, boss. Maybe 12 hours ago."

"Mikey - you aren't going anywhere. Whitman?"

"I'm good."

"You two, go find Joey. There are 2 warehouses here and here (he points to a map) that we didn't know about earlier. Annie might be there. We need to get to her quickly. If you find her, take her directly to a hospital and put her under guard. Also get Collins and Miller - we need to have both of you on back-up here. We might have gotten some people a little upset this evening. I don't think they suspect but we need to be cautious."

"Mikey, we have to assume that someone caught onto you. I can't let you go back to the boarding house while this is open - it might risk lives of others. You'll stay here. Even if we were followed, there are 3 of us here and will have 2 back-ups soon."

Whitman and Dunnett went on their way. 

Jake got Mikey set up in the room that was his just last night. Mikey walked past Frankie's room then into Jake's room and looked at his boss in disbelief.

"Boss, you really slept in this room when..." he tilted his head over to Frankie's room. He got a warning glance. "Are you crazy? Look at her! Man, we all thought you were..."

"Mikey" The constable shook to attention. "We are on duty."

"Yes, sir." Then in a quieter voice, Mikey added, clearly not knowing when to shut up around his superiors "You are a stronger man than I am. And, I'm not even the one turning her head!"

Jake looks at him incredulously before picking up his night clothes and a few essentials out of the room.

"Get to sleep, Mikey. You look like hell."

"Good Night, sir."

Jake used the bathroom to get dressed for bed. Then he came out into the main living area. He made his mind up to sleep on the couch this evening.

Frankie was in the kitchen putting the kettle on. She had already put on her nightgown and robe to get ready for bed.

"I'm guessing you'd want a cup of tea?" He stopped and blinked at her. "Don't worry...I'm just putting water on. I think you should take over from here."

Jake got the teapot out and poured some hot water in it. Swirled it around and dumped it into the cups to warm them up.

Then took out the tea and a teaspoon.

"One spoon for the pot and one for each cup you are making." he said as he scooped the tea into the pot. She walked around and peaked in. She bit her lips and looked up at him, thinking that she had easily put in 6 or 7 times that amount.

Then he added water half-way up the pot - just enough for two.

"It sits for 4 minutes"

She continued to stand there looking at the pot as if it was going to do a trick. He poured the tea, added some milk and handed her a cup. She thanked him with her eyes.

"What do we do now?" He walked over to the couch and she joined him.

"We should get to sleep so that we'll be rested for tomorrow. If we tried to chase anyone down and anyone caught on to what we were doing, the match between you and Moira at risk. I suspect that whatever happens then will be the keystone to being able to take down Grimes."

"I don't feel right just doing nothing."

"Then, let's do something." He was thinking of the nights he spent here protecting people in the other room. Some of them were witnesses. Some of them were criminals who struck deals for reduced sentences - usually to avoid hanging. How many evenings of draughts did he spend here? 

He looked over to the bookshelf.

"Chess...Cards...Backgammon...Draughts..."

"I *do* owe you a dare, Inspector." 

He was silent for a moment before speaking. "Yes, you do. I was saving that up until I was off duty."

"Does that mean you know what you will ask me to do?" Her eyes flashed at him, totally disregarding the fact that he said he was on duty.

He blushed. She loved it when she made him blush.

"You're blushing." 

"I am not blushing. The room is dark." 

"You are blushing!"

"I don't blush"

"You are blushing right now." 

He can't tell her what he wants. He wants to but he can't. He cleared his throat and shook his head.

"I want to know so badly" as she gets on her hands to crawl closer to where he is on the couch "what you are going to ask me to do."

His heart is beating so hard that he can't stand to be his own skin right now. Nor can he stop himself from smiling.

"I can't"

"You can"

He lowered his eyelids and looked down into his now empty cup of tea. He placed it on the side table.

"That thing you did the other night." looking anywhere but in her eyes. 

She knew exactly what he meant. It was just a quick flick of her tongue. It took less than a second. So, he's got a thing for ears.

She got closer to him. "Ask me"

He looked down and to the side of the room. 

She leaned in closer. "Ask. me." she whispered.

He raised his eyelids to meet her gaze. 

"I dare you..." he paused "to do that again."

"I accept."

She purposefully went to the wrong ear and brought her mouth close to it. She rubbed her nose along the hard fold of the concha, whose ridge ended in the very middle of his ear. She inhaled slowly then and drew her tongue up around the soft outer fold of the helix. 

He exhaled softly. "Are you sure that is what you did yesterday?"

"I'm not sure at all. I'm trying to remember. Just bear with me a moment."

Then she ran the tip of her tongue under the crux of the helix at the top of his ear before lightly capturing it with her lips. "Was this it, inspector?"

His chest was visibly rising and falling. "No, I don't think so"

She nibbled back down along the crest and took his lobe in her teeth, gently. "How 'bout this?" 

"It really wasn't that long ago. Can't you remember?"

She lightly snaked her tongue inside the very edge of his ear canal. She withdrew her tongue and blew lightly. "Maybe I did this?"

His jaw slack. "Quite frankly, this isn't how I remembered it at all."

She licked along the inside ridge of his ear before starting to pulse her tongue in and out, in and out matching the speed of his heartbeat. She sucked on his tragus, that little flap of flesh that stands up to separate his hear from the rest of his handsome face. She murmured "Am I getting warmer?"

He drops his head backwards. He can feel the affects of her attention all the way down to his toes. "It isn't even the correct ear," he mumbled.

She slung one leg over his lap so that she was straddling him. "Oh, dear me. How could I forget something as important as that? You *will* give me the chance to fix this won't you?" she whispered in his other ear.

He swallowed a groan.

She started kissing his neck, then his jaw and over to his ear. She brushed her lips over the width of his fossa. He could feel her every inhale, her every exhale. She inhaled his ear lobe into her mouth, sucking on it to underscore the ebb and flow of blood rushing through him. 

"No, no - not right at all. If..." His eyes were totally unfocused. "If you haven't done it yet, maybe you don't remember at all. I dare say that this means you still owe me a dare. Do you agree?"

"That depends...are you going to ask me to do this again?"

"Definitely."

"Then, as long as I haven't performed the dare to your satisfaction, I would say that it is only fair that I still owe you a dare."

"I am so glad to hear that."

He raised his head. She did the same. Their mutual gaze found each other, the space between them contracted. They each lowered their eyes to each others lips as they moved together slowly. He mouthed at her lips. He felt her open her mouth to him. They latched on to each other to deepen their kiss. 

They pulled apart and looked at each other, inspecting each other, detecting the emotions flitting over the others face. If they only knew their faces said the same thing: "I want this...do you as well?" Not daring to hope they could really see this in each other, they waited a moment more until ...

...the door knocked.

Tension departed with forced expiration. They sat forehead-to-forehead for a moment more. She got up to get dressed in her room. He wrapped the blanket around himself.

Then, he answered the door.

It was Joey.

Whitman had caught up with him. They found Annie and took her to the hospital, where there is a guard at the door. Whitman hoped that it will look like she was able to escape on her own but he can't be sure of this.

Frankie came out of her room wearing street clothes and joined in their discussion.

Joey confirmed that Collins and Miller were outside as back-up.

The next day, the DI would meet with his superiors to get resources to plan a raid tomorrow night. They needed a substantial number of uniforms around the perimeter in order to bring in the large group of people that were involved in this activity. Grimes and Banks might be leading this group but it will be the people who are there that will share evidence to help the two top criminals hang.

They only have to wait until 2pm to confirm the location.

In the meantime, Hawley gets confirmation that Robert Sharp isn't planning on this being a straight fight. There is talk to capture both Frankie and Jake upon arrival. If this is the case, the only people they will have on the inside watching them would be Miller, Hawley and Joey. They have to prepare for any one of the 3 of them sending the signal to start the raid. 

Get word to everyone that they need to be very careful and thorough in the capture and tagging of evidence. We can't risk any technicalities.

In the meantime, Jake and Frankie run through scenarios to mitigate different kinds attacks that could be planned for their arrival. Since this is meant to be a match - even a dirty one - the chances are that the two of them will be disabled until the matches start. But not killed.

Even if Grimes and his group are very outnumbered by the police, there is a very real possibility that one or both of them will get injured. Or worse.

This is certainly not the scenario they had planned on over the past few weeks. Jack ponders on whether the raid happen without sending her in. It is too dangerous.

"You aren't going in alone, Jack" she used the seriousness of the moment to call him by his given name. "We are going in together and we are coming out together. Let's just keep reviewing our options and coming up with ways we can communicate if we can't speak. Alright?"

6 more hours until they get the address. There was always so much waiting for a raid. Why doesn't someone tell his brain that it can wait as well. But it is racing. The waiting brings the nerves. He never gets used to this.

Frankie and Jake sat on the couch together, floating in and out of discussion. "What about...", "Don't forget..." 

Whitman brought in food for them at lunch.

At 2pm, Frankie and Jake met Robert Sharp to get the address. Nothing else seemed out of the ordinary. Without everyone in place getting information, he never would have suspected the set-up coming their way.

In the early afternoon, they go through their routine. Stretching. Light workout. Then they get to the docks and the appointed place and in the appointed hour. Just before they walk through, Jake grabs Frankie's hand and gives it a squeeze.

The place feels dirty. Jake and Frankie stick to each other's side as they go in. Miller is near the ring. Hawley in the back taking bets from punters. Joey standing next to his "boss", who has him do routes to and from the opium dens. 

They get ready to start the match. Moira is already in the ring. Jake helps Frankie with her gloves before she gets in the ring as well. They thought something would have happened to one of them by now.

Then it does.

Miller puts a choke on Jake and holds him at gunpoint. Grimes explains that Frankie will be working for them now. The kind of work she will be doing will depend on how she fights. 

Jake gives the signal that he knows Miller is posturing. This was one of the scenarios they planned for.

The fight starts with Moira. At first, she fights fair. Frankie uses every second of defensive training she learned over the past several weeks. Moira is getting in better punches but she is also wearing herself out. Work the long game, Frankie, she tells herself. 

There was no break for the round. No rounds, no stops. Another thing they planned for. As Moira gets tired, she gets more erratic. Then, she starts playing dirty.

Frankie thinks she sees a needle. She is not about to play by the rules if her opponent doesn't. Her judo skills kick-in to use Moira's strength against her. Moira is on the ground and Frankie steps on the needle.

Why hasn't someone called the signal to start the raid?

She can't look around the warehouse. She needs to stay totally focused on Moira, who is now running straight for her. She wishes she weren't wearing these gloves. Since she *is*, she steps into Moira and delivers and uppercut then a left hook. Moira delivers a string of hard punches across Frankie's ribs and stomach. Frankie focuses on blocking her face and head. Keep your mind clear! She thinks. 

Where is the damn signal?

Finally, the warehouse is rushed.

Frankie uses the distraction to get her weight behind Moira's knee and take her down. Jack is behind her in a second and clamps Moira's hands.

Cover thrown, Phryne and Jack survey the area to track where the players are. Moira is here, with them. Miller has Robert Stark. Joey has Grieg. Whitman has the accountant. Dunes has Hedgeson. Where is Grimes? 

There he is. 

He's been shot. 

By George Sanderson???

"I didn't realize he'd be here, Jack."

"Neither did I." He said. "Good thing, though - he's always one who has taken down vice." Jack was left with a niggling feeling that something wasn't quite right about his presence. As this was the only gun fire, he was also worried about the use of deadly force. He looked down again. Grimes had no gun. It would be a question for another day.

The arrests were completed. In the secondary raids on the opium dens, 10 missing women and 3 missing men were found.

Bess has not been found. Neither has Clara. They are officially listed as missing persons of interest.

Detective Inspector Jack Robinson meets with the team who participated in the undercover operation. They reviewed the structure of the organization and how the team came to have power in City South. The process was given an initial review to discuss what worked, what didn't. The brief was summarized with a reminder on the importance of being meticulous in paperwork. The exciting work had been done but it is the next part of the police work that would ensure that the right people hang.

Questions?

There didn't appear to be questions but before the group dispersed, Mikey couldn't resist giving Miller a hard time for getting overwhelmed in a boxing ring by a woman - that is, by Frankie, herself.

Phryne couldn't resist: "a gentleman wouldn't say it but he was making me look good."

Miller replied "I may have tried playing to your strengths, Miss Fisher but you deserved that win fair and square." He continued. " You know, my missus will go out on the town with her girlfriends of an evening when I'm working late. I'd feel better if I knew she could pack a wallop like you. Would you consider giving her lessons."

Miss Fisher snapped shut the file she had been reading. She ran her eyes up and down Miller in naked appraisal. "As much as I'd like to help you out...Constable...I'm going to suggest - and I mean this from experience - that she might savor the experience more if you tended to her lessons, *personally*." With that, she fanned herself with the file, gave him a sly smile and let her gaze float over to the DI.

Jack is looking at her sternly. He tries to ignore the cat calls around the room directed at Miller. 

The group is dismissed, happy to head home to their families and their own beds. Fond farewells are given to Miss Fisher. She had become really quite fond of them over this experience. She wondered if anything of them might be up for sparing some time soon. When she was bored. Perhaps.

The one person who wouldn't get to go home was Detective Inspector Jack Robinson. He had quite a lot of paperwork that he needed to complete - in triplicate - before the Commissioner arrived at 8am.

"Miss Fisher, before you leave may I see you in my office for a moment?"

"Of course, Jack!"

He shut the door behind him and leaned against his desk.

"There is the small matter of an unanswered question that needs dealing with."

"What's that, Jack?"

"You never answered...truth or dare?" Phryne bit her lip and smiled.

"Dare, of course."

This time he met her gaze straight on. "Do you remember that thing you did the other night?"

Phryne looked puzzled.

"When we met Grimes."

"Hmmm...did it involve your ear? and my tongue? I *might* remember something about it, yes."

"I dare you..." he puts his hands on the table behind him and waits for recognition. He gets it "...to do that again."

She walks over to him so that her toes are lined up with his toes. She deliberately leans over to the wrong ear. She mumbled so that her lips would brush up against his skin when she spoke "I'm not exactly sure what I did. Bear with me, will you?"

She licked the back of his ear lobe to capture it into her mouth. She sucked on it and let it pull out of her mouth with a snap. Then she nibbled on his tragus. She rubbed her nose along his cheek before giving him little kisses at the top of his neck.

"It wasn't quite like this, Jack. Was it?"

"No, not quite. It isn't the correct ear, for a start."

The door knocked. "Uh...Detective Inspector? One of the suspects needs to speak with you."

Jack pulled his lips back under his teeth. And took a breath in before he smiled at Phryne.

He got up to peek out the door - not enough to show his ears, mind you - and told Constable Collins to bring the suspect to the interview room, where he will join them in five minutes.

He closed the door and walked back over to Phryne. 

"There was actually one other unanswered question. If you remember correctly, it was your call to see Lin that allowed us to make plans around the right set of warehouses."

She looked quite surprised.

"Oh. Well, I'd better ask you then. Truth or dare?"

"Truth, as always"

She had no idea what to ask him. Then she thought for a moment. 

"You never answered my question about my boxing costume. What did you think of it?"

It was such a trivial question, he almost answered it. "I can't possibly answer that, Miss Fisher. I'm afraid I'll have to forfeit."

"Really? Of all the things..."

"Really. I refuse."

"So that means..."

"That means of course that I owe you dinner tomorrow night. I remember you saying that it has been quite some time since you had cheese and onion pie."

Oh, he's cooking for her!

"Forfeit anytime you like, Inspector. I'll be there." she left the room, looking back over her shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More truth and/or dares coming as separate stories in the series. I wouldn't leave you hanging without more J & P goodness, I promise!


End file.
